Too Late
by Raven and Writing Desks
Summary: It was their final chance to retrieve Sasuke. However, it ended up going horribly wrong. "I was too late. I'm sorry." SasuSaku. One-shot.


**Too Late**

Pain… It radiates throughout her entire body and makes her brain fuzzy. It pulls her into the eagerly awaiting darkness.

Darkness that promises an end to the pain all over her body and the ache in her chest.

Darkness that promises relief.

_So this is it._

_…_

_I failed._

* * *

"We've finally infiltrated Sound." Naruto says as he and Sakura watch the small village under the light of the full moon.

"We can finally find _him_." Sakura says quietly. Her mind drifts to the boy who she has loved for the majority of her life.

The boy who always found her annoying.

The boy who had finally let down his guard and opened up to her.

The boy that during a fleeting meeting had admitted that he loved her too.

_Why couldn't you have just come back with me __then__?_ Sakura's thoughts are interrupted when Naruto speaks again.

"We'll have to move through that open field. I don't like it, but it's the only way to get to where Sasuke lives. Neji and Shikamaru will meet us inside the gates." No hints of his usual carefree attitude are found in his voice. When Naruto puts on his ANBU captain mask, it is as if he becomes a completely different person: serious, mature. Especially when the mission concerns their ex-teammate.

"Naruto." Sakura says looking into the cerulean eyes of her partner. "We can finally bring him home this time." She situates her own ANBU mask so that her face is covered with that of a cat.

Naruto nods his head in understanding, then signals with his hand for them to start making their way across the large open field.

They silently run through the grass. At first, it seems as if they would make it across completely undetected, but then the kunai started flying.

"Sakura! Get down!" Naruto yells warning his pink haired partner.

She hits the ground and covers her head. A kunai cuts across her leg; another hits her elbow. Once the rain of weapons end she immediately stands up in a defensive position. At least twenty Sound ninja run at her alone. Another twenty go after Naruto.

_Damn, they were expecting us._

Sakura pulls out three of her own kunai and toss them at the enemy. They hit their intended targets and the first of the bodies hit the ground. Unfortunately, they were immediately replaced by more shinobi. Sakura continues throwing weapons, but there are too many enemies, and now they were getting closer.

She lifts her fist and, loading as much chakra in it as possible, she hits the ground. Instantly afterwards, the ground splits, swallowing up a large group of the Sound ninja.

In the corner of her vision she sees Neji and Shikamaru join in the fight, tackling their own victims.

_Time to switch to close range combat. _She thinks to herself as one particularly large ninja runs at her with a raised fist. She dodges easily and attempts to kick him, but the offender grabs her foot by the ankle and twists. Sakura's body turns and she falls to the ground on her stomach. In a flash she jumps back to her feet. Pain in her ankle makes her stall for a second and she realizes that it's sprained.

Her opponent is unprepared for the Konoha ANBU's speed and Sakura gets the chance to place 3 chakra filled jabs to his stomach. The enemy shinobi barely staggers, though he coughs up some blood. He sends a powerful kick to sweep Sakura's legs out from under her. She lands on her tailbone. Hard.

However, she uses the position to her advantage and kicks in one of the man's knees. He stumbles slightly, but he digs his fingers into the cut on Sakura's leg making her cry out in pain. She twists her body around and lunges herself so that she wrestles the large shinobi's legs. Something small and sharp pierces into her back, barely missing the spinal cord. The pain is excruciating, but using her immense strength she fights through it and breaks the neck of her opponent.

Sakura wants to take a minute and heal her wounds, but there are too many enemies still coming at her. She pulls out the kunai that's jutting from her back and throws it, hitting a Sound ninja in the neck. Her victory is short lived however, when another enemy grabs her from behind. His large, meaty forearm covers her mouth.

* * *

"Orochimaru!" The door to the stone office slams open and hits the wall as an angry dark haired man walks in.

"That was quite an entrance Sasuke, but shouldn't you be training?" The sickeningly sweet voice asks, mockingly.

"Cut the crap! Where are my men?" The fuming Uchiha yells.

"We got a tip that some Konoha ANBU were seen heading towards the village, so I sent them out as a… welcoming committee." The snake manipulator calmly states.

"Why wasn't I informed of this?" Sasuke, furious now, yells out.

"Sasuke, I get the feeling that you are becoming emotionally conflicted. Ever since I sent you on that mission a year ago you've been acting... differently. Are you having second guesses about becoming my vessel?" The words are biting and mocking.

"How dare you question my loyalties! I've been nothing but faithful to you for five years. Even after you choose somebody else as your vessel two years ago." Sasuke has nothing but raw anger in his voice.

"I've told you before Sasuke, you weren't ready then. You had so much more to learn." Orochimaru says as calm as ever. "You _still _have so much more to learn."

In disbelief Sasuke turns and starts heading out the door he had previously smashed through.

"Where are you going Sssasssuke?" The Sanin asks, his voice sounding especially snake like as he practically hisses out his apprentice's name.

"To go find my men."

* * *

Sakura bites the arm until the taste of blood fills her mouth.

"You little bitch!" The owner of said arm yells out and loosens his grip on her. She takes the opportunity to spin entirely out of his grasp and slashes his stomach with a chakra scalpel causing his insides to spill out onto the battlefield.

She looks into the eyes of the man she just gutted, and watches as the life fades out of them. Right before he falls to the ground, he grabs the cloak covering her and pulls it off. Her mask stays in place, but now her full ANBU armor as well as her petal colored hair is visible.

She has little time to dwell on the gesture, because another enemy is sprinting towards her, head on. She runs towards him and rewards his courage with a knee to the groin. He falls forward and Sakura punches his back hard enough to feel his spine break.

By now, she's coming down from her initial adrenaline high and the pain starts to hit her everywhere. The medic nin's covered in multiple cuts from enemy weapons. Her ankle and tailbone are throbbing immensely, but she's down to her last chakra reserves and can't afford to heal them.

She's interrupted from her thoughts as a staggering force knocks into her stomach, sending her flying across the field. As her back hits the solid ground, the wind is knocked out of her lungs.

Before she has a chance to recover, the person who had issued the blow kicks her ribs. Sakura feels one crack and realizes that there's nothing she can do to stop the man as he straddles her hips. His knees pin her arms to the sides and he's too heavy for Sakura to buck off. He lands one strong punch to her face, causing her ANBU mask to crack in two and fall off.

"Pretty little kunoichi aren't you?" He says mockingly. "If you hadn't just gutted my buddy over there, I might've taken you back to be mine." His large hands wrap around her neck and start squeezing the life out of her. "But you're a dangerous one, and I can't let you live." His hands squeeze harder.

Sakura thrashes her legs and tries to wiggle her arms free, but she's weak and the lack of oxygen is causing dark spots to dance around her vision.

_So this is how I die? At least it was while trying to help you, Sasuke-kun._

_…_

_The sunrise… so pretty._

Right when Sakura's about to let the darkness take her, the arms around her neck release her.

She lets out a loud gasp and starts gulping down the oxygen as if it's water. She raises her head, which now feels as if it weighs a ton, to see another ANBU, Neji by the looks of the mask, circling the man that had just been strangling her.

_It's not over. Not. Yet._

She starts to move her numb legs when suddenly a sharp pain pierces her stomach.

* * *

"Sakura-chan!" Sasuke hears a pained voice cry out. He picks up his pace until he finds himself at the edge of the village, in a blood-soaked field. He spies Naruto trying to reach the center of the battleground, but there are too many enemies surrounding him. He spots two more ANBU fighting off some of their own enemies. Bodies litter the ground. Sasuke ignores them, stepping over some as he makes his way to the blonde boy, but then he sees one body in particular. One with blood pooling around its torso. A body with…

_Pink hair._

His heart plummets when he takes in the scene. A sword sticks out of her stomach. A man, who apparently had just delivered the final blow, clutches the hilt. He pulls his weapon out ruthlessly.

"Stupid bitch!" He spits at the broken girl. He raises the sword as if to stab her again, but a strong hand grabs it.

"Uchiha-sama." These are the man's final words before Sasuke takes the blade that was just impaled in Sakura and stabs it through the man's heart. The enraged Uchiha flings the corpse away and kneels down to the right side of his ex-teammate.

Her chest shudders slightly.

"Sa-Sasuke." Her voice is weak and blood bubbles in her mouth. Immediately, but carefully, Sasuke flips Sakura onto her stomach, not wanting her to drown in her own blood. She turns her head to the left side

"Don't try to talk, I'm here." Sasuke is absolutely livid as he eyes the multitude of cuts and bruises that cover her body. His gaze purposely tries to avoid the gaping hole in her stomach.

"You came." She's so close to death that it barely comes out as a whisper.

"I'm here Sakura, but why are you here? I told you that _I'd _come back to _you._" His voice breaks.

"That was two years ago, the council was getting impatient…" She coughs and more blood splatter the already soaked ground. "S-so was I."

Sasuke's usual cool façade is broken as tears come to his eyes. It hurt so much to see the woman he loves struggle like this.

Seeing the blood, he instantly turns frantic. "Sakura! Tell me what I can do to save you!"

"Sasu-Sasuke? I-I'm so c-cold." Her words are filled with such innocence and pain; she seems like a completely different person than the one that was cutting down the enemy only moments before.

Sasuke immediately moves to comfort her. He lies down next to his love and wraps his left arm over her back, being cautious to avoid the large wound that was caused by the sword.

_That sword._ He had recognized it the moment he had seen it protruding from Sakura's body. Sasuke had given it to one of his soldiers after training him how to use it.

Not wanting to believe it, he carefully buries his face into her bruised neck. His arms are firm on her trembling body.

"I'm here, I'm not going to leave you again." He murmurs. "I won't leave you alone." He feels so helpless. Is this little reassurance all he can do to help her?

"Th-thank you Sasuke…" More coughing, more blood. "That's all… all I ever wanted." Her body relaxes and stops convulsing. The moving of her chest, that signals her breathing, slows. "I'm sorry that I-I was too late to save you."

"No! Sakura! Sakura! You can't leave me! I love you… I'll… I'll do anything for you!" He cries out as tears run down his cheeks. He realizes that this is only the second time he's told her his true feelings. He leans down and kisses her mouth, not caring about the blood that now stains his lips.

"Everything will be alright now! We're together!" He sits up and gently moves her, so that her head and torso are resting in his lap. Her entire body is bathed in the pink light of the sunrise. As he watches her green eyes slip shut, he realizes how untrue his last words were.

Surrounded by the noise of battle, the girl, who had thawed the frozen heart of an Uchiha, stops breathing.

"No!" Sasuke's heartbreaking cry causes the entire battlefield to stop.

_I love you_

_I love you_

_I love you_

_You deserved to be told that everyday. Why didn't I listen to you? Why didn't I go back with you that day? _

_You were always there for me. I was the one that was too late. I'm sorry._

* * *

**A/N: **

So yeah, this was longer than I originally thought it was going to be. Oh well. It was my first time writing an action scene and it was so much more difficult than I expected.

Please review! All feedback and criticism is welcome! Also, if enough people end up liking this I will write a prequel about the "then" that took place two years prior to this when Sasuke realized that he loves Sakura. ;)


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